Margaret Cho: Stringing Words Together

Margaret Cho, Cho Dependent, Clownery Records

I'm so high it's like how's the weather?
It's really hard for me to string words together.
-- "Calling in Stoned" (Cho and Ben Lee)

You'd be forgiven for expecting a comedy album from Drop Dead
Diva star Margaret Cho. Her first musical CD provides plenty
of comic material, but in sonic terms, it's an indie rock venture.

Guest artists include Tegan & Sara, Ben Lee, Brendan Ben-
son, Fiona Apple, Andrew Bird, Jon Brion, Grant Lee Phil-
lips, Ani DiFranco--and Tommy Chong on "Calling in Stoned."



As Lee explains in the press notes, "She started learning gui-
tar at age 40 after seeing Madonna play." He paraphrases
Cho's reaction, "If that bitch can do it, it can't be that hard."

So, the Notorious C.H.O. has an impressive array of musician
friends, but what about her voice and writing skills? Well, she can
hold her own with any of the other actresses who've turned to re-
cord-making in recent years, from Minnie Driver to Law & Or-
der's Jill Hennessy, except I can't see them singing the Carl New-
man co-penned "Your Dick." If anything, that makes her work
more fun--and less likely to receive commercial exposure.

Your dick. Your dick. So big I could hug it,
with both arms like a koala bear and fall asleep.
Your dick. Your dick. Can be seen from the moon.
It's like a harpoon. Talk about Moby Dick.

On "Gimme Your Seed," Hey
Big Dog," and "My Puss," she
adds dance-pop, country,
and hip-hop flavors to the
mix, bringing smart-ass
outfits like Sparks to mind
(presumably for stockist
reasons, "Dick" appears as
"D**k," "Puss" as "P***").

In addition, the CD includ-
es bonus track "Lesbian
Escalation" with Rachael
Yamagata (I'm embarras-
sed to admit I read that
as "ejaculation"). Conclud-
es Ms. Cho about her mai-
den musical voyage, "I want to create a new genre of music that
is hilarious, but also seriously good." I'd say she's succeeded.

Complete track listing:
1. Intervention (co-written with and feat. Tegan & Sara)
2. Calling in Stoned (co-written with
Ben Lee, feat. Lee and Tommy Chong)
3. Your Dick (co-written with A.C. Newman, feat. Lee)
4. Baby I’m with the Band (co-written with and feat. Brendan Benson)
5. Hey Big Dog (co-written with Pat-
ty Griffin, feat. Lee and Fiona Apple)
6. I'm Sorry (co-written with and feat. Andrew Bird)
7. Lice (co-written with and feat. Lee)
8. Enemies (co-written with and feat. Jon Brion)
9. Asian Adjacent (co-written with and feat. Grant Lee Phillips)
10. Gimme Your Seed (co-written with and feat. Garrison Starr)
11. Eat Shit and Die (co-written with and feat. Grant Lee Phillips)
12. Captain Cameltoe (co-written with and feat. Ani DiFranco)
13. My Puss (co-written with Diana Yanez and Kurt
Hall / parody of Mickey Avalon and Dirt Nasty song)

Hidden Track (CD/digital only): Lesbian Escala-
tion (co-written with and feat. Rachael Yamagata)

Endnote: For more information about Margaret
Cho, please click here. Images from Planetary Group.